


everyone thinks i dodged a bullet (i think i shot the gun)

by Skyson



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-21
Updated: 2016-05-21
Packaged: 2018-06-09 19:58:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6920944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyson/pseuds/Skyson
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Post-finale. Is Coulson really hunting for Daisy, or is something else going on?</p>
            </blockquote>





	everyone thinks i dodged a bullet (i think i shot the gun)

**Author's Note:**

> I watched The Blacklist season finale yesterday, and the Greg Laswell song featured at the end really spoke to me. Title is the song, and lyrics featured within.

 

* * *

 

 _**I'm not gonna try and make it even** _  
_**You're way ahead by now** _

"Canvas the area. You won't find her."

"Where do you think she went?" Mack asked, when it was just the two of them again. Coulson sighed, frowned, and looked up toward the roofs.

"I don't know." Coulson admitted. There was nothing low enough for her to climb to the top, and these buildings were all too tall, anyway. They would have caught her halfway up. "She's always a step ahead."

"She's further ahead than that." Mack replied, and Coulson sighed.

"Yeah."

"Back to the flat? You should eat that sandwich I brought." Mack mentioned pointedly, and Coulson looked down at his shoes, shaking his head a little.

"Yeah."

 

 

**_I'm not gonna tell my new friends about you  
Nah, I'm gonna let that slide_ **

"You dodged a bullet with that girl, Coulson." Talbot told him, and Coulson pursed his lips.

"I'm the one that helped put her on this path... If she hadn't met me, she never would have gotten the serum, maybe never would have encountered the terrigen. Might still be a hacker in Texas, or LA, or some other city,"

Talbot raised his eyebrow dubiously, his mustache twitching a little as he twisted his mouth.

"Get back to base. We have a million other things going on than our little manhunt for your girl." With that, Talbot signed off and the screen cut to black. Coulson stared at it for a moment.

"I won't mention in my report how proud you sounded when you told the team that they wouldn't find her." Mack spoke up, glancing at Coulson only momentarily as he typed at his laptop. Coulson pursed his lips, grabbed his sandwich, and plopped down in his seat in front of the window again. "She never returns to the same place twice. You think she's gonna change that up now, after us getting so close this time?"

"No, she won't be back," Coulson agreed after chewing a bit of sandwich, and he picked up the binoculars, peering through them out the window. He heard Mack sigh, but he didn't acknowledge it.

Slowly, he scanned the area around the bench, and nearby, trying to find... _There_. Graffiti, supposedly; it even looked worn and sun-faded. Coulson smirked a little, proud of her talents.

A palm tree, it's leaves an artistic rendering of the initials _AC_ , and underneath, cursive scrawl that read _it's a magical place_.

Coulson smiled, leaning back in his chair and resting the binoculars in his lap. He knew where she was headed. And soon, he would be headed there as well. _Without_ SHIELD.

 

 

**_I'm not gonna try and make it all even  
Even though I know how_ **

"Hello," Coulson greeted the man with a smile as he slipped into the shop, sliding off his sunglasses and folding them closed.

"Phil," Dr. Winslow smiled widely upon catching his eyes and recognizing him. "How are you?" He came around the counter to greet him, and they shook hands with familiarity.

"I found this amazing little pastry shop just down the block, and, I thought you could take a lunch break?" Coulson offered, lifting up a bag of goodies. The other man's face lit up.

"Ah, yes, I _love_ that place! My friend - " He suddenly stopped and looked at Coulson sideways, almost appearing embarrassed. Coulson raised his eyebrow slowly. "I, uh... My lady friend, she, uh..."

"She has good taste." Coulson grinned, letting the man off the hook. He relaxed exponentially, laughed, and went back around the counter to fiddle with the computer for a moment.

"Let me just finish up this report..." He spoke as he worked, "We can chat in the break room, if you'd like. And - just between you and me - you look like you could use some puppy love. I could be persuaded to bring Cap in, and let him hang out with the adults for a bit." Dr. Winslow caught Coulson's eye, and the veterinarian winked. Coulson smiled, a little relieved.

Cap was a golden retriever puppy, the runt of a litter that had otherwise all been adopted already. Dr. Winslow allowed Coulson to name him, and eventually he did away with the 'for sale' sign, and Cap became the shop's mascot.

Coulson's phone rang, and he frowned at it. Dr. Winslow hopped from behind the counter, gesturing with his thumb toward the hall.

"Just meet me when you're done? You know where it is." The doctor suggested, and Coulson nodded, handing off the bag of food as he answered his phone.

Dr. Winslow, glancing behind him once to make sure Coulson's attention was truly elsewhere, slipped into the break room without opening the door all the way.

"You need to go. _Now_." He warned, and Daisy looked up from where she was sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Company?" She whispered, and he nodded frantically.

"Your _friend_ , to be exact. The one you don't want to know that you come here." He set the food down on the table, and reached down to pick the dog up out of Daisy's lap. "Which, I don't really get, since _you_ know that _he_ visits me... Tell me again why you two are in such a fight?"

"It's a long story, we've been over this," Daisy said, not unkindly, as she quickly got to her feet. "It's not that we're fighting. I'll go out the back. Just, please,"

"I know, I know," He waved his free hand in the air as he propped the dog against his chest, "Don't tell anyone." He ruffled the dog's fur, and then asked before she disappeared, "Will I see you again soon?"

Daisy hesitated, and smiled at him gently.

"Hopefully." She assured him, and he smiled back.

Just as the door latched shut behind her, the front hall entrance opened up behind the doctor, and Coulson stepped into the room.

"Hey! Just got ol' Cap, here," Dr. Winslow said hurriedly, waving at Coulson with the dog's paw. Cap yipped excitedly and started wriggling in the doctor's arms, wanting to get closer to Coulson.

Coulson smiled and reached for the dog. Dr. Winslow inwardly sighed in relief once he passed Coulson the puppy, turning and checking to make sure Daisy hadn't left any signs of her presence.

Of course, she hadn't.

 

 

**_I'm gonna get up, and make it look easy  
Even though I don't know how_ **

"You shaved." Mack said in surprise, standing in the doorway with a couple coffees and a small paper bag in his hands. Coulson gave him a wry look and took one of the coffees from him, leaving the door open for him to follow him into the flat.

"It was itchy." He replied, carefully popping the lid off of his cup so the drink would cool down some.

"Where'd you find that suit?" Mack wondered, looking him up and down.

"I certainly didn't throw them all out," Coulson said, giving Mack a look. Mack raised his eyebrows a little before turning away, no doubt rolling his eyes when he thought Coulson couldn't tell.

"I'm just surprised. You seem like you're back to...you."

He was far from it, but, looking like it - that was the point. He smiled a little, and then gestured toward the bag in Mack's hand.

"Doughnuts?" He asked.

 

 

**_I'm gonna be lazy when I write about you  
Even though it takes all my might_ **

"Coulson, these latest reports..." May started, holding up a file between them. Coulson stopped in front of her in the hall.

"What about them? Did I misfile something? I'm still getting a hang of the new system,"

"No, Phil, it's your writing." May went straight to the point. Coulson blinked. "These updates about the search for Daisy. You've grown almost..."

"What?" Coulson challenged, and May's eyes narrowed just slightly.

" _Lazy_." Coulson pursed his lips at her retort, and she took a step toward him. "I've been reading your field reports for years, Phil, I can recognize your writing out of a stack of hundreds, just after one look. What the hell are you hiding, here?"

"I'm not hiding anything, May." Coulson assured her blandly, as if her accusation bored him. "Perhaps I've gotten a little tired about having zero leads. I apologize for that bleeding into my reports; I'll try to refrain from doing so in the future."

With that, he stepped around her and started to continue down the hall. He felt her unbelieving eyes boring holes in the back of his head, but he didn't stop walking - he didn't stop walking until he reached his quarters, where he immediately locked himself in and fiddled with his bookshelf until a secret compartment opened up.

He pulled out a dark brown leather-bound notebook, unwrapping the cord from around it and opening it up to a blank page. He pressed his fingers against one of the previous pages for a moment, before sitting at his desk and pulling out a pen.

He needed to write down everything that had really happened during the op, before he forgot the minutiae.

 

 

**_I'm gonna get back to believing  
It's been a long, long time now_ **

"Do they suspect anything?" Daisy asked, just barely trailing the tips of her fingers through his hair, above his ear.

"No. Even Mack believes I've finally completely given up." Coulson assured her, wrapping his hand around her hip and pulling her against his side.

"So you trust me?" Daisy asked, sounding surprised. Coulson gave her a look, as if her surprise insulted him. "Sorry, I just... It's hard to tell sometimes whether you've truly drunk the kool-aid."

"Daisy," Coulson chided softly, propping himself up on his elbow so he could look at her, and she smiled sheepishly.

"I trust you." She told him, pressing her thumb against his cheekbone. "I always have."

"So what changed your mind about this? What made you decide to make me an official part of your team?" Coulson wondered, sliding his hand up underneath her tank top a little, resting his hand on the warmth of her waist. She grinned at him.

"You're _really_ good in bed," She drawled in a dirty tone, and Coulson groaned and laughed. He slid his hand back down her side, tugging hard when he reached her hip, moving her closer against him. She laughed, her nails scratching the back of his neck lightly, and he continued moving his hand down her leg, pulling it up over his own hip.

"Oh, is that all?" He teased, brushing his nose against hers.

"And you're an excellent boss." She continued, a little more seriously. "I know you didn't like being Director so much, which is why we're gonna be partners."

"In every way?" He asked quietly, moving his hand around to her butt, holding her tightly against him as he rolled his hips.

"Hmm, yeah," She smiled, kissing him.

* * *

 


End file.
